This week on The Stakes, Tara Setmayer and Michelle Kinney sit down with Dr. Steven Hassan, one of the world’s foremost experts on cults. As America faces growing extremism and political radicalization, Dr. Hassan helps us understand the psychology behind cult-like devotion, how manipulation spreads, and what it takes to break free.

From his personal story as a former cult member to his decades of research and activism, Dr. Hassan brings unmatched insight into the dangers of authoritarian control—and how we can fight back with truth, compassion, and resilience.

📺 Watch The Stakes with Tara Setmayer and Michelle Kinney every Thursday live at 7:30 PM ET.

👉 The Seneca Project is one of the few groups unafraid to stand our ground, and we cannot continue this fight without you. Are you with us?

SUPPORT THE SENECA PROJECT: https://www.SenecaProject.Us

📺 Subscribe to The Seneca Project and hit the notification bell to stay updated on all our latest broadcasts, content, and new ads.

The Seneca Project is an unapologetic movement—by women, for women—driven by the relentless power of our collective voice. We are galvanizing voters to rise up against the assault on women’s freedoms, the erosion of democracy, and the dangerous threat posed by Donald Trump’s presidency. With courage and conviction, we transform our outrage into action, using compelling content, rapid-response videos, and impactful ads to spark the emotional urgency that drives change.

The Stakes hiatus is over! Tara and Michelle were back this week with a jam-packed episode of The Stakes. From the recent school shootings, Pam Bondi’s threats to free speech, doxxing democrats, and the public fallout after the death of Charlie Kirk, there was so much to discuss. 

The highlight? Our friend Gay Valimont joined us! 

Gay is a former Florida congressional candidate and longtime gun violence prevention leader.  Her personal journey—including caring for her late husband and son—drives her passion for humane, community-focused politics. Through her newly founded Political Action Committee, Engage, Y’all!, Gay is providing funding, training, tools, and boots-on-the-ground support for people ready to run for office in overlooked communities across the South. 

We talked about all of this and more on this week’s episode. Be sure to leave a comment and let us know what you think! 

SUPPORT THE SENECA PROJECT: https://www.SenecaProject.Us

📺 Subscribe to The Seneca Project and hit the notification bell to stay updated on all our latest broadcasts, content, and new ads.

The Seneca Project is an unapologetic movement—by women, for women—driven by the relentless power of our collective voice.

We are galvanizing voters to rise up against the assault on women’s freedoms, the erosion of democracy, and the dangerous threat posed by Donald Trump’s presidency. With courage and conviction, we transform our outrage into action, using compelling content, rapid-response videos, and impactful ads to spark the emotional urgency that drives change.

WATCH THE STAKES 7:30 PM ET THURSDAYS ON YOUTUBE

Guest ✨ Cait Conley — Democratic candidate for Congress in New York’s 17th district. A U.S. Army veteran and West Point graduate, Cait served in Iraq and Afghanistan before working at the Pentagon and in national security. Now she’s running to bring integrity, service, and real leadership back to Congress in one of the most competitive swing districts in the country.

FOLLOW CAIT CONLEY

https://caitconley.com/

https://www.instagram.com/caitconley/

https://x.com/CaitforNewYork

Guest ✨ Ilyse Hogue — Co-founder of The All-American and one of the sharpest democracy strategists in the country. As the former president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, Ilyse has long been a leading voice in the fight for reproductive freedom. Today she’s focused on defending democracy itself, with a particular focus on the impact of gerrymandering, voter suppression, and the fight to secure mail-in ballots.

FOLLOW ILYSE HOGUE

https://x.com/ilyseh

https://www.instagram.com/ilyseh

📺 Watch The Stakes with Tara Setmayer and Michelle Kinney every Thursday live at 7:30 PM ET.

The Seneca Project is one of the few groups unafraid to stand our ground, and we cannot continue this fight without you. Are you with us?

👉 SUPPORT THE SENECA PROJECT: https://www.SenecaProject.Us

📺 Subscribe to The Seneca Project and hit the notification bell to stay updated on all our latest broadcasts, content, and new ads.

The Seneca Project is an unapologetic movement—by women, for women—driven by the relentless power of our collective voice. We are galvanizing voters to rise up against the assault on women’s freedoms, the erosion of democracy, and the dangerous threat posed by Donald Trump’s presidency. With courage and conviction, we transform our outrage into action, using compelling content, rapid-response videos, and impactful ads to spark the emotional urgency that drives change.

Guests Professor Corey Brettschneider and Democratic Strategist Julie Roginsky -- from the fight to save democracy to the takedown of CNN’s favorite fragile pundit, Scott Jennings.

In the first half, we’re joined by Corey Brettschneider, Professor of Political Science at Brown University, where he teaches constitutional law and political theory. He is the author of The Presidents and the People: Five Leaders Who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens Who Fought to Defend It — winner of the American Bar Association Silver Gavel Award for Best Book — and co-host of the podcast The Oath and the Office. We’ll explore how his work illuminates the threats to democracy we face today.

Then, in the second half, Julie Roginsky joins Tara and Michelle for a no-holds-barred breakdown of recent CNN clashes with Scott Jennings. Both Tara and Julie went toe-to-toe with him this week on Abby Phillip’s show — while he melted down, clearly triggered by strong women who won’t back down, won’t tolerate lies, and refuse to be called liars simply because he doesn’t like being challenged. We’ll connect the dots between his spineless grandstanding, his thirst for a Kentucky Senate seat, and the fragile egos of men who crumble when faced with the truth.

FOLLOW PROFESSOR COREY BRETTSCHNIEDER: https://x.com/brettschneiderc

FOLLOW JULIE ROGINSKY: https://x.com/julieroginsky

https://saltypolitics.substack.com/

SUPPORT THE SENECA PROJECT: https://www.SenecaProject.us

📺 Subscribe to The Seneca Project and hit the notification bell to stay updated on all our latest broadcasts, content, and new ads.

The Seneca Project is an unapologetic movement—by women, for women—driven by the relentless power of our collective voice. We are galvanizing voters to rise up against the assault on women’s freedoms, the erosion of democracy, and the dangerous threat posed by Donald Trump’s presidency. With courage and conviction, we transform our outrage into action, using compelling content, rapid-response videos, and impactful ads to spark the emotional urgency that drives change.

Tara and Michelle are joined by investigative reporter Vicky Ward, renowned for her groundbreaking coverage of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Ward is the host and co-producer of the acclaimed podcast and docuseries Chasing Ghislaine and a New York Times bestselling author whose work has exposed the dark intersections of power, privilege, and abuse.

Vicky is also the author of The Idaho Four: An American Tragedy, co-written by James Patterson.

This episode was recorded on July 31, 2025 and aired August 1, 2025.

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The Seneca Project is one of the few groups unafraid to stand our ground, and we cannot continue this fight without you. Are you with us?

SUPPORT THE SENECA PROJECT: https://www.SenecaProject.Us

📺 Subscribe to The Seneca Project and hit the notification bell to stay updated on all our latest broadcasts, content, and new ads.

The Seneca Project is an unapologetic movement—by women, for women—driven by the relentless power of our collective voice. We are galvanizing voters to rise up against the assault on women’s freedoms, the erosion of democracy, and the dangerous threat posed by Donald Trump’s presidency. With courage and conviction, we transform our outrage into action, using compelling content, rapid-response videos, and impactful ads to spark the emotional urgency that drives change.

This week on The Stakes, Tara Setmayer and Michelle Kinney are joined by former U.S. Attorney, legal analyst, and Host of Talking Feds Podcast Harry Litman to break down the latest headlines—from the renewed focus and legal implications on Jeffrey Epstein.

We also talk about Trump and MAGA's gutting of PBS, and episode of South Park that everyone is talking about -- including us!

Talking Feds Podcast: https://www.talkingfeds.com/

Talking Feds Substack: https://harrylitman.substack.com/

Follow Harry on Twitter: https://x.com/harrylitman

📺 Watchlist Picks:

Won’t You Be My Neighbor? (2018) – A deeply moving documentary about the life and legacy of Fred Rogers.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019) – A dramatized film starring Tom Hanks as Mister Rogers, based on the true story of journalist Tom Junod.

Watch The Stakes with Tara Setmayer and Michelle Kinney every Thursday live at 7:30 PM ET.

The Seneca Project is one of the few groups unafraid to stand our ground, and we cannot continue this fight without you. Are you with us?

👉 SUPPORT THE SENECA PROJECT: https://www.SenecaProject.Us

📺 Subscribe to The Seneca Project and hit the notification bell to stay updated on all our latest broadcasts, content, and new ads.

The Seneca Project is an unapologetic movement—by women, for women—driven by the relentless power of our collective voice. We are galvanizing voters to rise up against the assault on women’s freedoms, the erosion of democracy, and the dangerous threat posed by Donald Trump’s presidency. With courage and conviction, we transform our outrage into action, using compelling content, rapid-response videos, and impactful ads to spark the emotional urgency that drives change.

America is in distress. Tara and Michelle are flabbergasted by the detainment of California Senator Alex Padilla and discuss the implications of the shocking moment before moving on to the No Kings protests scheduled for June 14.

📺 Watch The Stakes with Tara Setmayer and Michelle Kinney every Thursday live at 7:30 PM ET.

💥 The Seneca Project is one of the few groups unafraid to stand our ground—and we cannot continue this fight without you. Are you with us?

👉 SUPPORT THE SENECA PROJECT: https://www.SenecaProject.Us

🔔 Subscribe to The Seneca Project and hit the notification bell to stay updated on all our latest broadcasts, content, and new ads.

The Seneca Project is an unapologetic movement—by women, for women—driven by the relentless power of our collective voice. We are galvanizing voters to rise up against the assault on women’s freedoms, the erosion of democracy, and the dangerous threat posed by Donald Trump’s presidency. With courage and conviction, we transform our outrage into action, using compelling content, rapid-response videos, and impactful ads to spark the emotional urgency that drives change.

The Stakes May 22 at 7:30 PM ET with Tara Setmayer and Michelle Kinney

There's a new Pope!

He's from the U.S..

He's from Chicago?!

Tara and Michelle discuss what this means for the future of the Catholic Church and MAGA.

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Watch The Stakes with Tara Setmayer and Michelle Kinney every Thursday live at 7:30 PM ET.

The Seneca Project is one of the few groups unafraid to stand our ground, and we cannot continue this fight without you. Are you with us?

SUPPORT THE SENECA PROJECT: https://www.SenecaProject.Us

📺 Subscribe to The Seneca Project and hit the notification bell to stay updated on all our latest broadcasts, content, and new ads.

The Seneca Project is an unapologetic movement—by women, for women—driven by the relentless power of our collective voice.

We are galvanizing voters to rise up against the assault on women’s freedoms, the erosion of democracy, and the dangerous threat posed by Donald Trump’s presidency. With courage and conviction, we transform our outrage into action, using compelling content, rapid-response videos, and impactful ads to spark the emotional urgency that drives change.

Seneca co-founders and co-hosts of The Stakes Tara Setmayer and Michelle Kinney talk Trump's First 100 Days, Democrats' capitulation, Gretchen Whitmer, JD Pritzker, and more.

Tune in every Thursday at 7:30 pm ET LIVE on X, Facebook, and YouTube.

SUPPORT THE SENECA PROJECT: https://www.SenecaProject.Us

📺 Subscribe to The Seneca Project and hit the notification bell to stay updated on all our latest broadcasts, content, and new ads.

The Seneca Project is an unapologetic movement—by women, for women—driven by the relentless power of our collective voice.

We are galvanizing voters to rise up against the assault on women’s freedoms, the erosion of democracy, and the dangerous threat posed by Donald Trump’s presidency. Through compelling content and powerful conversations, we transform outrage into action.